Rail travel
➔ powerpoints, freshly prepared hot food
and free hot drinks. Meanwhile, passengers travelling first
class on Greater Anglia services between Norwich and London Liverpool Street – and on the operator's Stansted Express subsidiary – receive compli-mentary refreshments, newspapers, magazines and wifi access. Its intercity services also feature a quiet coach. Lounges are another perk of first class
travel with some operators. Greater Anglia offers such facilities at several stations – including Liverpool Street – but Chiltern Railways does not. ScotRail's first class travellers have
access to lounges at Aberdeen and Edinburgh Waverley stations and is rolling out wifi – free to all passengers – across its network. It is unusual among TOCs in operating one of only two overnight sleeper services, the Caledonian Sleeper. Travelling between Scotland and London
Euston, it features reclining seats, twin berth cabins and single berth first class cabins targeted at business travellers. Another operator with a difference is
Heathrow Express. Owned by BAA, it operates some 150 departures a day on the 15-minute run between the airport and London Paddington. Its interior is designed with that of an aircraft in mind in line with its "positioning against airlines rather than other train operating companies". Its Business First coaches were designed by Tangerine - the company responsible for British Airways' first flatbed concept – and perks on the short journey include free wifi, newspapers and magazines. Virgin Trains reports a two per cent rise
in first class journey numbers over the last year on its West Coast network. It operates first class lounges at some stations and also offers free wifi, food and drink to its premium travellers.
dis “ Most organisations with long tance rail travel needs are usually
aware of what each operator offers. In recent years, TOCs have vastly improved the information they
communicate about their product ”
Also upbeat about premium passenger numbers is CrossCountry. "First class journeys continue to increase as more and more companies recognise the benefits of productive time over simply travelling," says a spokesperson. As well as the usual perks of free wifi,
powerpoints and catering, it also offers a ten minute reservation service "enabling business customers travelling with a flexible ticket to make a reservation on the Cross- Country train they wish to catch up to ten minutes before it departs their start station." Martin Turner, head of sales at East
Coast, says the operator's relaunch of its first class offering in 2011 was heavily influenced by customer feedback. "At the time, we were in an economic
environment in which corporates had moved away from first class. We were left in a position wondering whether to get rid of it, leave it as it was, or really upgrade it to attract passengers back," he says. Research among passengers revealed
an "overwhelming response" to keep first class and to upgrade it. As a result, it now includes a full at-seat dining service irrespective of fare or ticket type, free
C M Y CM MY CY CMY K
➔
Pictured: Above: Chiltern Railways; Right: East Coast's Flying Scotsman
42 THE BUSINESS TRAVEL MAGAZINE
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